Law firm Linklaters is to enhance parental leave for its 2,500 UK employees, with plans to assess the suitability of an enhanced parental support package for its other offices and regions in 2020.
The policy, which will come into effect from 1 January 2020, will see paid leave increase to 12 weeks for employees whose partner is having a baby, adopting a child or becoming a parent through surrogacy.
The parental leave can be taken at any time during the first 12 months following the arrival of their child.
Linklaters overarching parental leave policy currently also offers employees enhanced shared parental leave of 26 weeks at full pay and 13 weeks at the statutory rate. Eligible new working parents can choose how to share the care of their child for up to 50 weeks of leave during the first year following their child’s birth or adoption.
In addition, employees of children under 18 years old, can also take advantage of 18 weeks unpaid parental leave for each child, which can be taken in blocks of one week or more up to a maximum of four weeks in a year for each child
Nick Porter, partner and chairman of Linklaters People Committee, said: “This policy will facilitate and normalise both parents spending more time with their children, which we believe helps to provide the best support for working families. As a father of three who could only take two weeks off each time, I am thrilled that Linklaters is now offering all parents the opportunity to spend more time with their new child.”
Kate Richardson-Moore, global head of talent and engagement at Linklaters, added: “We want to be a champion of improved gender equality in the workplace and a market leader in our diversity and inclusion practices. Our new parental leave policy is a step towards removing traditional distinctions between primary and secondary caregivers and it gives our new parents, in particular fathers, an opportunity to share the responsibility of welcoming a new child into their family.”
